Pork Chops with Peach Salsa and Zucchini Ribbon Salad

Peach season is here! Peach season is here! For some reason, this year more than others, Luke and I are FREAKING OUT about peaches and down several of the small, ripe, juicy ones in a day. This lunch was so fresh and satisfying, we were literally licking our plates (I'm not embarrassed to admit it!).

Pork Chops with Peach Salsa

1 3/4-inch thick, bone-in pork chops

Salt and pepper to taste

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

2 large or 3 small peaches, chopped

1/2 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced

1 shallot, finely diced

1 lime, squeezed

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Season pork chops with salt and pepper to taste. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet and cook pork chops 3-4 minutes per side or until they reach your desired level of doneness.

Meanwhile, add chopped peaches, jalapeno, shallot, lime juice and cilantro to a bowl and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle in 1 tablespoon olive oil - add more oil if desired.  When pork chops are done, top with salsa and enjoy!

Zucchini Ribbon Salad
A simplified version based on this recipe from Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine

2 zucchini, washed and ends trimmed
Zest and juice of one lemon
1 1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste
Parmigiano Reggiano, optional

Stand the zucchini up and, using a vegetable peeler, peel it into long ribbons. Rotate 90 degrees and proceed to do it with all four sides of the zucchini and discard the center seedy section.

In a large bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Add zucchini ribbons and toss thoroughly to combine.  If desired, top with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Little Miss Mussels

Did you ever read the Little Miss and Mr. books when you were a kid? I loved them! That's besides the point here though unfortunately.

It took me a long time to come around to mussels. For the longest time I thought they looked strange and the thought of figuring out how to eat them in public, let alone attempting to cook them, intimidated me. I finally had mussels and fries and was transformed. The transformation was complete when I visited Thomas Keller's Bouchon in Vegas back in February - his were so decadent and well-presented, the ultimate feast!

Finally, the stars aligned for me to "muscle up" and make some on my own. While flipping through this month's Family Circle, they had a recipe for Mussels and Fries in their budget section - mussels are affordable? Who knew! So I walked down to Whole Foods Market, and low and behold, mussels were on sale! I bought some on the spot and made some for Luke the next day for a welcome home lunch. He approved. Here's my variation on FC's dish:

Mussels and Fries

2 pounds baking potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon lemon thyme sprigs
1 ounce Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated
6 leaves basil, freshly chopped
2 pounds mussels
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup white wine


Heat oven to 450 degrees . Place mussels in a large bowl of lightly salted cold water. Set aside.

Peel potatoes and, using a mandoline (a birthday present from Luke!), slice into 1/2 inch thick fries (alternatively, cut by hand). Toss with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Scatter in a single layer on a baking sheet along with 1/2 of the thyme, still on the sprigs, and bake at 450 degrees for 17 minutes. Using a metal spatula (not tongs, I did and I broke a few!) flip potatoes and bake 15 more minutes or until they are browned. Remove from oven; toss with additional salt to taste. When ready to serve, sprinkle with Parmigiano Reggiano and basil.

Meanwhile, debeard mussels by pulling off the seaweed-like string between the shells. Discard any open mussels. (If open, tap on the counter; if shell closes, you can keep it.) Place mussels in a new bowl.

Melt butter in a large, lidded pot over medium heat (I used my medium-sized cast iron dutch oven). Stir in red onion and saute 3 minutes. Stir in garlic and saute another 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine, remaining thyme and salt to taste; bring to a simmer. Add mussels, cover and cook 6 to 8 minutes, or until shells have opened and mussels are cooked through. Discard any mussels that did not open.

Serve fries alongside mussels and cooking liquid.

Put an egg on it Pasta

I love cooking and make homemade dinners probably 6 nights a week. When Luke goes out of town for business however, it's a different story. I take the time to catch up with friends or whip up a pot of simple homemade mac and cheese for comfort. Last week was different. This meal was inspired by my full vegetable drawer that had been ignored all week, and it was super satisfying!

Put an egg on it Pasta

6 ounces fettucine

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 red onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large zucchini, chopped

2 eggs

6 sundried tomatoes packed in oil, chopped

1/4 cup pitted olives, chopped

6 ounces spinach

1/3 cup part skim ricotta

8 sprigs fresh basil, chopped

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Salt and pepper to taste

Before the finishing touch - the egg!

Place a large pot of water to boil. Cook fettucine to al dente and drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water.

In a large skillet, warm olive oil on medium heat. Saute onion and garlic for 3 minutes, then add zucchini and cook another 5 minutes. 

While zucchini is cooking, in a small saucepan boil water. When it just reaches a boil, bring the temperature down so it's simmering (and add 1 tablespoon vinegar if desired), then crack an egg in a mug and slowly lower it in the water. Repeat with the other egg. Cook about 3 minutes for a fairly runny yolk, then remove with a slotted spoon. Cover to keep warm.

When zucchini starts to brown, stir in tomatoes and olives, then spinach. Toss in fettucine and toss to combine. Stir in ricotta and reserved pasta water as needed for desired consistency. Place in bowls and top with poached egg, then sprinkle with basil and Parmigiano Reggiano. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Put an egg on it!

"Date" Night Chicken

I love a good pun, especially when it involves food. While "Date" Night Chicken would be great for a date, it more just stars the sweet flavor of Medjool dates that I love so much. Inspired by some boneless, skinless chicken thighs I snagged on sale, this is a mash-up of Braised Chicken with Dates and Moroccan Spices from Bon Appetit and Chicken, Date and Apricot Tagine from Cooking Light. I was afraid of losing some of the juiciness in the chicken by using boneless/skinless, but it was perfectly tender. A+ from the husband!

"Date" Night Chicken

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon turmeric

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 tablespoon canola oil

1/2 red onion or 1 large shallot, diced

4-5 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 15-oz can chickpeas

8 pitted dates, sliced

2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted

Fresh parsley, optional

Basmati rice for serving (or couscous!)

Combine the spices (through pepper) in a small bowl. Sprinkle over chicken thighs and rub all over. Heat oil in a medium dutch oven or other heavy pot with a lid. Brown the chicken on both sides (about 4 minutes per side), then remove to a plate and tent with foil. Add onion and garlic to the pan and saute 3-4 minutes. Pour in chicken broth and whisk in tomato paste, then bring to a boil. Add chicken back to pan and chickpeas. Reduce heat and cover, cooking for 15 minutes. Stir in dates.

Place rice or couscous on your plate and top with chicken mixture. Sprinkle with pine nuts and parsley, if using. Enjoy!

Breakfast of Champions

In our old place, Luke and I enjoyed this Double Green Smoothie almost every work day morning for breakfast as a great way to pack fruits and veggies into the first meal of the day. While I still love it, I figured with a new house, it's time to work in new weekday breakfast items as well. What I love about this is that it seems like such a treat, but if you hard boil your eggs in advance, it only takes 5 minutes to make!

Egg and Avocado Sandwich
Serves 2

4 slices whole wheat bread (we prefer Seeduction bread from Whole Foods Market. English muffins would work well too!)
1/2 medium-sized avocado, peeled and sliced
2 ounces spinach
1 ounce goat cheese, crumbled
1 hard boiled egg, peeled and sliced

Lay out your bread and top 2 slices with avocado, slightly smushing to make it like a spread. Layer spinach and goat cheese on top, then place hard boiled egg slices to hold it down. Top with remaining 2 slices of bread. Cook in toaster oven for about 5 minutes, until bread is toasted.

Serve with a side of fresh fruit to really round things out!

Easy Recipe, Big News

First off, the news. Luke and I started quietly looking for houses online early this year, and we recently just purchased our first home in north Austin! The big move is this Friday, and I hope to share some kitchen photos soon. Our first home improvement project will be building a couple large garden boxes to go in our big back yard, so hoping we share a post on that soon too!

With all this moving business (not to mention some unexpected travel last week), my cooking schedule has been a bit wonky. That said, I wanted to get a few more cooking sessions in while still in my bright blue kitchen, so I've been making some easy-to-cook-then-repurpose meals. Case in point, I prepared the Curried Chicken with Coconut Rice from Everyday Food's May issue on  Saturday (subbing in some beautiful bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts that were on sale at Whole Foods Market instead of a whole chicken cut up), and made a little more rice than the recipe called for. We had a good 2 cups of coconut rice leftover in addition to what I portioned for our leftover chicken, so a new recipe was born. 

Curried Shrimp, Mango and Coconut Rice

3/4 pound peeled and deveined shrimp

1 teaspoon curry powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 lime, halved and divided 

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 semi-ripe or ripe mango, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces

1/2 green bell pepper, cut into bite-sized pieces

2 cups leftover rice

2 cups spinach

Place the shrimp in a bowl or baggie. Add curry powder, cayenne, juice from 1/2 lime and salt and pepper to taste and toss/shake to combine. Heat a large nonstick skillet on medium heat and warm olive oil. Add mango and bell pepper to pan and saute until beginning to lightly brown, 4-5 minutes. Add shrimp to pan and cook one minute, then turn over until shrimp is cooked through.

Meanwhile, warm up rice. Place rice in 2 serving bowls and add 1 cup spinach to each bowl, then toss to combine. Top each rice mixture with 1/2 of shrimp and vegetable mixture, then squeeze remaining lime half over it. Enjoy!

Don't want to make the Curried Chicken recipe first for the rice leftovers? Here's a few other coconut rice recipes I've found that look tasty:

Toasted Coconut Rice from Cooking Light

Coconut Rice from Bon Appetit

Toasted Coconut Rice from Everyday Food

Easter ham remix

This year the Lehfelds celebrated Easter one week early. That means I get to reap the benefits of delicious leftover ham a whole week earlier than most (I can hear the jealous sighs now!) This meal came togtether out of necessity - I had no time to go to the store and we had been out of town all weekend. An avid menu planner, recipe reader and writer, this was totally against my better nature, but the results were so satisfying! Unfortunately, I have no photo since this was a thrown-together lunch, so let your imagination run wild... :)

Ham, Eggs and Apple Pita

1 large pita
3-4 ounces spira-cut ham, cut in bite-sized pieces
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 hard boiled egg, sliced
1/2 apple, cut in bite-sized pieces
1 ounce sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)

Preheat toaster oven (I said this was a work recipe right?!) to 375. Place ham on pita and spread mustard over. If you're using the cheese, sprinkle it on now. Place in the toaster oven and heat about 3 minutes, until pita and ham are warm, and cheese begins to melt if using. Take it out and place egg and apple slices on, wrap and eat!